Boron in the UK

Hardware
1

Hi, all—bit of a silly question as my digging so far leaves me with a clear answer but I'd greatly appreciate confirmation. In short, can I procure and use a Boron in the UK without significant modification to, e.g., firmware/custom SIM card/etc.? Our team has put lots of work into creating very Boron-friendly designs that would not readily accommodate the BSoM so I want to be certain that I've looked under every stone.

Here's what I've learned so far:

The Boron works over 2G/3G in the UK according to the following screenshot, but the Particle store shows 2G/3G units only for sale on trays. I need only a couple (for now), so the tray option won't do...

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The B524 would work in principle but requires either a custom PCB or
Particle M.2 SoM Evaluation Board, which unfortunately won't fit my sensor housing.

This thread and this post in the thread in particular make it clear that the more readily available BRN404X won't work in the UK.

If anyone knows of anything I'm missing (including procurement options for Boron 2G/3G if 2G has a few years left in the UK), I'd love suggestions! Or if I've reached the end of the road, confirmation of that would help, too. Thanks!

2

Hey @supscientist (if your housing allows for it) it might be worth tracking the Muon carrier board which is compatible with B524. It is shipping very soon and will open you up to a lot more flexibility.

3

While not officially supported, the BRN404X will work in the UK on O2 when running Device OS 6.2.1 and later. The issue is that it does not have CE or UKCA certification at this time. There is time left before 2G shutdown, and there will likely be an official solution before then.

4

Thanks, @ericpietrowicz. The Muon carrier board might fit one of our two designs. Thankfully we made the choice to develop two housings in parallel and it might just pay off if this fits and they're available soon!

5

Thanks, @rickkas7. So this would be with a different SIM card (via O2) but still LTE-M, correct?

6

No, it's the same built-in Particle EtherSIM. No hardware or configuration changes needed.

It's just that only O2 has LTE Cat M1. And the newer Device OS version is because earlier versions had the EU bands disabled in software in the cellular modem.

7

Oh, wow, fascinating. Thanks, that's great to know!